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Bill targeting illicit use of crypto passes US House

The Financial Technology Protection Act passed the House of Representatives by voice vote roughly a year after lawmakers sent it out of committee.

Lawmakers in the United States House of Representatives voted in favor of legislation to establish a working group researching the illicit use of digital assets.

A majority of House members approved the Financial Technology Protection Act by voice vote on July 22. The bill, introduced in April 2023 by Representatives Zach Nunn and Jim Himes, aims to address how “rogue and foreign nations” could use crypto to evade sanctions by having members of several federal agencies coordinate their efforts.

“This bipartisan bill will help ensure the United States is prepared to address security risks and prevent illicit money laundering while also protecting consumer choice for all Americans,” said Representative Nunn. “We must do both simultaneously to ensure the long-term integrity of digital assets.”

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What crypto policies can voters expect from potential VPs under Kamala Harris?

Despite endorsements from major party leaders, the top and bottom of the Democratic presidential ticket have yet to be fixed.

Though United States Vice President Kamala Harris has yet to officially win the Democratic nomination for president in 2024, many experts suggest she has an excellent chance to be the party’s candidate, facing off against Republican Donald Trump in November.

At the time of publication, it was unclear whether the Democratic National Convention (DNC) would hold an open primary — allowing any candidate to potentially win the delegates for the top of the ticket — or conduct a “virtual roll call” to decide on a nominee before a critical state deadline. The DNC is scheduled to begin on Aug. 19 in Chicago. However, Ohio’s election laws require parties to certify their presidential tickets by Aug. 7, suggesting that Democrats may take steps to ensure Harris is nominated outside of an open convention.

With the endorsement of US President Joe Biden, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Representative Nancy Pelosi, and many Democratic leaders, Harris may become the party’s candidate in 2024. Until the nomination is official, certain Democrats have a chance of being at the top of the ticket or potentially vice presidential candidates under Harris.

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The Digital Chamber pens letter to Vice President Kamala Harris

“Over 50 million Americans own crypto,” the advocacy letter states while calling on Kamala Harris to deviate from the Democrats’ current party line.

The Digital Chamber penned an open letter to United States Vice President Kamala Harris on July 22 advocating for a more crypto-friendly stance and industry engagement from the potential Democrat nominee, should she secure the party’s 2024 presidential nomination.

The Digital Chamber’s letter outlines three actionable points for a potential Harris campaign, including support for digital assets in the Democrat Party’s platform, a vice presidential candidate “sophisticated” in digital asset policy, and lines of communication between the presumptive candidate’s campaign and industry leaders.

After weeks of speculation, a letter was posted to President Joe Biden’s X social media account on July 21, announcing that the incumbent was dropping out of the 2024 presidential race. This development was hotly contested in predictive markets.

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Biden out, bull run in? Here’s what analysts think

Biden’s sudden move to abandon the 2024 presidential race could be a “huge boost” for crypto assets, but it may be too soon to get excited about a massive crypto rally.

United States President Joe Biden shocked the markets when he ended his reelection bid on Sunday, July 22.

Some analysts suggested that the president’s withdrawal from the election race could benefit Bitcoin (BTC) and other crypto assets in the coming months, while others cautioned that investors should temper their excitement for now.

The price of Bitcoin immediately dipped as much as 2.8% following the announcement, touching the $65,800 mark, but it quickly regained over 3.6% by the time of publication, according to TradingView data.

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What we know about Kamala Harris’ views on crypto

With Joe out of the race, all bets are off.

The vice president of the United States, Kamala Harris, is a bit of an anomaly among Capitol Hill politicians: she’s never had strong words to say for or against digital currencies, tokenization, blockchain, or NFTs. 

None of that has mattered for the past four years as US president Joseph Biden has had plenty to say about crypto during his stay in the White House.

But that’s all changed since Biden announced his intent to drop out of the upcoming presidential election. While there’s no guarantee that his vice president will get the democratic nomination, he’s already given Harris his endorsement.

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Grayscale announces plans for Bitcoin ETF spinoff

Current GBTC shareholders will receive shares in Grayscale’s new Bitcoin ETF in proportion to what they currently hold in GBTC.

On July 19, crypto asset manager Grayscale announced plans to spin off a portion of its flagship Bitcoin fund, Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), into a new exchange-traded fund (ETF).

On July 31, Grayscale will contribute 10% of the spot Bitcoin (BTC) held by GTBC to its new ETF, Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust (BTC). The company said the ETF is set to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange’s (NYSE) Arca exchange pending final regulatory signoff.

Current GBTC shareholders will receive shares in the Mini Trust in direct proportion to the shares they hold in GBTC. As a result of the spinoff, GBTC holders will hold the same amount of spot BTC as before, but across two different funds.

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Messari CEO Ryan Selkis resigns after political, discriminatory posts

Selkis stepped down as CEO of Messari following statements on social media platform X. Eric Turner will head the company.

Ryan Selkis has resigned as CEO of the data aggregator platform Messari following public controversy over calls for civil war and political remarks on immigrants in the United States as election season heats up.

According to an announcement, Eric Turner, chief revenue officer of Messari, will head the company. Turner joined Messari in 2018.

“I’ve decided to step aside from my operating CEO role at Messari and transition to the role of Senior Advisor. This was a decision I did not take lightly and one I was very close to making last month, as I considered the problems I was most passionate about tackling in society at large,” reads Selkis’ statement.

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Tyler Winklevoss donates $500K to John Deaton’s campaign

The tech entrepreneur characterized incumbent Elizabeth Warren's regulatory power over the Biden administration as a "Faustian bargain."

Tyler Winklevoss, co-founder of Gemini and Winklevoss Capital, announced a $500,000 donation to attorney John Deaton's Senate campaign on July 18.

The investor and entrepreneur laid out his case in a lengthy social media thread that was highly critical of incumbent Elizabeth Warren, characterizing the Massachusetts Senator as the "chief architect" behind the Biden administration's war on the crypto industry.

Winklevoss claimed that President Joe Biden granted Elizabeth Warren, who is a senior member of the Democrat Party, veto power over his regulatory nominees in exchange for endorsing his 2020 presidential campaign.

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Pixelverse PIXFI token rises nearly 50% in first hours after airdrop

Pixelverse airdropped 10% of PIXFI’s total supply to holders of its Rare, Epic, and Legendary non-fungible token (NFT) collections.

Pixelverse, a non-fungible token (NFT) and gaming platform on The Open Network (TON), launched its native token, PIXFI, in a much-anticipated airdrop on July 18.

The token traded up almost 50% in the first hours after listing and approached approximately $200 million in fully-diluted market capitalization before pulling back later in the day, according to CoinMarketCap.

The PIXFI token is now listed on several centralized exchanges, including Bybit, HTX, Gate, Bitget, MEXC, according to another Pixelverse X post.

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Crypto Super PAC spends $1.3M on media buy for Arizona Democrat

The Protect Progress political action committee has been behind media buys for candidates in many congressional races across the United States.

The political action committee (PAC) Protect Progress has used more than $1.3 million to support the campaign of a Democratic candidate for Arizona’s 3rd Congressional District. 

According to expenditures filed with the Federal Election Commission, the Protect Progress Super PAC disseminated more than $1.3 million in a media buy to support Yassamin Ansari. The Arizona Democrat will compete for the congressional seat in a July 30 primary against Raquel Terán and Duane Wooten.

Though Terán’s and Wooten’s policy positions on crypto and blockchain were unclear at the time of publication, Ansari’s campaign website stated she supported “lead[ing] the way in the blockchain and crypto innovation.” The Democratic candidate also completed Coinbase’s Stand With Crypto questionnaire, suggesting she would support pro-crypto legislation if elected to Congress.

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